ANKARA
On Tuesday, Ajax suspended its new chief executive, Alex Kroes, over insider trading allegations and announced plans to sack him.
“The supervisory board of AFC Ajax NV has taken the decision to suspend Alex Kroes, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors, with immediate effect and with the intention of definitively ending the collaboration,” a club representative said.
“This resolution was taken after the supervisory board learned that Kroes had purchased more than 17,000 Ajax shares a week before the announcement of his appointment scheduled for August 2, 2023. The supervisory board requested an outside legal opinion, stating that it most likely engaged in insider trading. Insider trading is a fraudulent crime,” the text adds.
Michael van Praag, chairman of the supervisory board, said he was “deeply appalled” by the alleged insider trading at the Amsterdam club.
“Alex Kroes’ moves don’t fit with what Ajax stands for,” van Praag said.
“The timing of your stock acquisition indicates insider trading. Such a violation of the law would be tolerated in a publicly traded company, especially when it comes to the CEO,” he added.
Kroes, 49, took up his position at Ajax on March 15 this year after being proposed as the new CEO and chairman of the board in August 2023.
In the past he played for Dutch Eredivisie clubs Go Ahead Eagles and AZ Alkmaar.
Kroes replaced former chief executive Edwin van der Sar after the former Ajax and Netherlands goalkeeper left his checkpoint in May 2023.